How To Land An Airplane James Yeh

General aviation is growing its popularity worldwide and in the United States. It is very easy and fairy inexpensive to obtain
a general aviation aircraft and be a part of it. Think of it as golf, fishing, or other hobbies. Assuming you have basic knowledge in
flying a plane, this tutorial will focus on the approach and landing phase of a flight.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to safely land a

single engine, piston powered fixed wing aircraft. Examples
of this category of aircraft include the famous Cessna 172
and Piper Cherokee. We will assume perfect atmospheric
conditions, that is: 1) There are few or no clouds in the sky,
2) There is little to no crosswind, 3) The visibility is more
than 10 miles, and 4) The runway is long enough and in
good condition. In this document, we will base the scenario
on landing a Piper Warrior II aircraft (Call sign Warrior
2570U) at State College University Park Airport (KUNV)
runway 24. The illustrations of this tutorial are screenshots Figure 1. Piper Warrior Tail number N2570U on the general aviation ramp at the State College
from X-Plane, a highly detailed and precise flight simulator. University Park Airport (KUNV)

Review of airplane instrument panel and flight controls

1 2 3 7

12

5
8 4

6
9

Figure 2. The instrument

10 panel of a Piper Warrior
general aviation airplane.

1. Air Speed Indicator – Provides airspeed information in knots (kts) (1 kt = 1.151 mph)
2. Attitude Indicator – Displays pitch and roll information
3. Altimeter – Displays altitude in feet
4. Gyro compass – Displays heading information
5. Vertical speed indicator – Displays climb and descent rates in 1000 feet per minute
6. Tachometer – Displays the working speed of an engine in 100 rpm
7. Communication panel – Controls radio frequencies
8. Yoke – Controls pitch and roll: pull back to pitch up, push forwards to pitch down, turn clockwise to roll right, and rotate
counterclockwise to roll left.
9. Throttle – Controls fuel flow to the engines. Push forwards to get more thrust and retard the lever to decelerate.
10. Rudder pedals – Controls yaw and brake: Push with right foot to yaw right and push with left foot to turn left. Brakes are
mounted on top of the pedals. Step with the tip of your feet to activate brakes for each side.
11. Flaps lever (Not shown in picture): the lever is located between the left and right seat. Pull the lever to extend the flaps and
push down to retract the flaps. Flaps create more lift but induces drag to allow for a steeper approach angle without gaining
excessive airspeed.
12. Push to talk button (PTT): push to transmit on the selected radio frequency.
1. Approaching an airport and entering traffic pattern

Entry
(45 dergees from Downwind leg)

Wind direction

Figure 3. Traffic pattern at the University park Airport.

A good landing starts with a good approach. Only by taking time and plan for the landing can it be perfect. When
approaching the airport, tune the radio frequency to the ATIS (Automatic Terminal Information System) for the field. This recorded
message tells you the wind condition and runway in use. In this scenario, we will use runway 24 since the wind direction is more
favorable from this heading. Advise air traffic control your intention to land, and the controller will have you join the traffic pattern.
Traffic patterns at airports consist of legs. There are 5 legs in a full traffic pattern, but we will focus on 3 of them when landing
(figure 3). At this point, adjust your speed to 90 knots by setting the throttle so that the tachometer reads 2100 rpm. Maintain 1000
ft above ground level until abeam the runway threshold.

1. Push the push to talk button on the yoke and say: “University park tower, warrior 2570U is 5 miles southeast from the
airport, inbound for full-stop landing.”
2. The controller will reply with: “Warrior 2570U enter left downwind for runway 24. ”
3. When entering the traffic pattern for landing, aircrafts should enter at a 45-degree angle to the downwind leg. At
KUNV, this downwind leg roughly follows the I99 highway.
4. At this point, adjust your speed to 90 knots by setting the throttle so that the tachometer reads 2100 rpm. Maintain
1000 ft above ground level until you see the start of the runway just appears to be at your left wingtip (figure 4).
5. When you see the runway threshold at your left wingtip, reduce power to 1700 rpm, add a notch of flaps and
simultaneously start a descent at about 500 feet per minute.
6. Keep flying the airplane on the downwind leg until the runway is 45 degrees over your left shoulder (figure 5). Turn 90
degrees to the left, facing Bellefonte Airport while maintaining the descent.
7. Add a second notch of flaps. Because flaps induce lift to the airplane, pitch down to stay descending. The airspeed
indicator should read 79 knots at this stage.

Figure 4 (Right) and

RUNWAY RUNWAY Figure 5 (Left): Both
figures are the
pilot’s perspective
when the plane is
on the downwind
leg. In figure 4, the
runway is just at the
wingtips, and in
figure 5, the pilot
must turn his/her
head 45 degrees
backwards to the
left in order to see
the runway.
2. Final approach
1. Look over to the runway and gradually turn the plane towards the runway. Line up with the runway centerline with the
rudder pedals.
2. Study the full length of the runway and make sure the runway is clear of any obstacles. Select a touchdown point, a
point which the airplane will impact the ground at current descent rate if no corrections are made.
3. Reference the precision approach
path indicator (PAPI) located to the
right of the runway (figure 6). If you
see 2 red lights and 2 white lights, you
are on the correct descend path. If
you see more red lights than yellow,
you are too low; if you see more
yellow lights than red, you are too
high.
4. Continue descending towards this
point while adding the last notch of
flaps. This will slow the plane down to
just about 70 knots. Maintain this
pitch attitude and power setting Figure 6. The precision approach path indicator (PAPI) to the right of runway 24 at the University park Airport.
This PAPI shows 2 red lights and 2 yellow lights and this indicates that the plane is on the correct descend angle.
throughout the descent. This is called
a “stabilized approach”.
5. The controller in the control tower should give you the landing clearance: “Warrior 2570U, Cleared to land runway 24.”
Readback the instruction to the controller: “Cleared to land runway 24, Warrior 2570U.”

3. Flare (Roundout)
1. Maintain stabilized approach and continue the descent towards the selected aiming point until roughly 20 to 30 feet
above the runway.

2. Gradually pull the yoke back to raise the nose. This will reduce the speed and slow the descend rate of the airplane. The
airplane will appear to be almost floating above the runway. (refer to figure 7)

3. Hold the yoke and steer the airplane with the rudder to maintain aligned with the runway centerline. Maintain the
shallow pitch attitude until the airplane settles slowly towards the runway surface.

(WARNING) If you misjudge the altitude, it can cause a high roundout and ultimately lead to a float or hard (even crash)
landing. In this case, GO AROUND IMMEDIATELY! (See part X)

Figure 7. Aiming point and flaring. In the left part of the picture, the aircraft in descending towards the aiming point. When the airplane is 20 to 30 feet above the runway, the pilot pulls
on the yoke to slow the descend and preparing the plane for touchdown. The distance traveled in flare is calculated from the aiming point to the touchdown point.
4. Touchdown
A good landing is defined by a good touchdown. If you
followed the steps above you should be able to just gently set the
plane on the runway with the main gears first.

1. Continue to pull the yoke as the plane descend with

the nose up. Maintain the attitude as shown in
figure. A few seconds later, the main gears should
come in contact with the runway(Figure 8), with the
airplane nose pitching up.
2. Slowly release pulling force on the yoke to slowly Figure 8. The airplane touching down on its main wheels first. The nosewheel is still
set the nose gear onto the runway. inches above the runway and the airplane is pitching up.

(WARNING) Do not land on the nose gear first. This could cause the airplane to bounce back into the air. In this situation,
GO AROUND IMMEDIATELY! (See part X). Do not try to salvage the landing. The nose gear can not withstand the weight of
the plane by itself and could break or bend.

(WARNING) If the aircraft stays in flare attitude for excessive amount of time, there may not be enough runway length to
safely land the aircraft. In this situation, GO AROUND IMMEDIATELY! (See part X). Do not try to set the plane onto runway.

5. After landing roll

An aircraft does not finish landing after touchdown.

1. After you have successfully eased the nosewheel onto the runway, pull the yoke backwards. This helps slowing the
plane using aerodynamics.
2. Keep the aircraft on the runway centerline with the rudder pedals.
3. While puling the yoke, gently step on the brakes to bring the airplane to a complete stop or to a desired ground speed.
4. Welcome to your destination and congratulations on the good landing. Clear the runway and vacate onto a taxiway as
soon as possible to avoid delaying landing or departing traffic.
5. Complete the after-landing checklist after you come to a complete stop on the taxiway.
6. Contact ground control so the controller can guide you to the ramp for parking.

(Caution) When decelerating, avoid using excessive braking as it may damage the brake system.

(Caution) Always come to a complete stop on the taxiway to complete the checklist. Never use the checklist while moving
the plane on the ground as it can cause distraction and may jeopardize the safety of the plane.

X. Go around
Flying is just like driving: there are countless unexpected events that will jeopardize safety. Discontinuation of landing is
mandatory anytime the pilot decides that a safe landing cannot be accomplished. A “go around” is an aviation term for “try again on
your landing”. You are never committed to land a plane on the first try. As mentioned in previous steps, anytime you as the pilot feel
you might not land the plane safely, start a go around. A go around can also be ordered by the control tower in case of runway
incursion, an incident where an unauthorized aircraft, vehicle or person enters a runway. The moment you decide to execute a go
around, add full power by pushing the throttle forward IMMEDIATELY. Do not adjust the flaps before reaching a safe altitude and
speed since retracing flaps can cause loss of lift and the nose of the aircraft pitching down.

More information on landings:

1. FAA Airplane Flying Handbook Chapters 7&8:
https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/airplane_handbook/
2. AOPA Air Safety Institute: https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/air-safety-institute/safety-
spotlights/takeoffs-and-landing

Figure 7: http://twinandturbine.com/article/ready-osh-third-degree/
All other figures are screenshotted from Xplane 11, a simulator developed by Laminar Research. The virtual aircraft model
used in the simulator is Piper PA28-161 Warrior II v2 From xplane.org.